Conveying and sorting device.



A B PROAL, JR CONVEYING AND SORTING nnvwn.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 6, 1911. 1 ,Q46,853 Patented Dec. 10, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

% r moment A. B. rnOAL, JR. CONVEYING AND soa'rme DEVICE.

APBLIOATION FILED DEC. 6, 1911.

Patented Dec. 10, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Arman/Er! A. BJPROAL, JR. CONVEYING AND SORTING DEVICE.

APPLIOATION IILED DEGSS, 1911.

Patented Dec. 10, 1912 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSES:

d. flJA WW7 6 is a plan view the periphery sufiicienty UNITED sTArEs PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR IBIBIEESE BROAL, JR, OF NU'ILEY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR" 10 ROBINS GON- VEYING BELT COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CONVEYING AND SOR'IING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent. 7

Patented Dec. 10, 1912.

To all whom it may concern: 1

Be it known that I, ARTHUR Bnnnsn PROAL, J r., a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Nutley, in the State of New Jersey, post-oflice address Robins Conveying Belt Company, 13 Park Row, New York, N. Y., have invented certain, new and useful Improvements in Conveying and Sorting Devices, of which the following is a specification, accompanied by drawings.

The invention is particularly designed for the conveying and sorting of express matter, mail matter and packages in a quick and economical manner, and is particularly useful for the conveyance of packages to a central point and there sorting and distributing them among a plurality of bins, receptacles or receiving points.

Figur matic, of one form of the conveying and sorting device. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same, partly in section. Fig. 3 is a larger detail view of part of the same. Fig. 1 is a view, artly in section, of a portion of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a sectional view of'a preferred form of part of the apparatus. Fig. .of the same partly broken away and with some arts omitted. Figs. 7 8 and 9 are vertical sectional deta ls thereof.

vA rotatory conveyer is employed havin an inner conical surface 10 inclined toward tocause the a ticles falling thereon to be vfed by gravitytoward the. periphery thereof. 'By conical I do not mean to exclude pyramidal and other forms inclined outwardly for the same purpose.

A conveyer 11 brings the articles to be sorted and delivers them to the upper portion of the rotatory conveyer, as shown.

the ot of the inclined surface 10 is a horizonta carrying surface 12 surrounded by a peripheral .flange 13. The horizontal surface 12 allows a considerable quantity of the c umu e upon it and go around and aroundjuntil removed. Flange 13 serves to prevent such articles lipp ni fio n cr d d o an to rres t e des o ar ides n i ey are'allowed tofaccumulate upon the inclined e 1 is a plan .view, partly diagram-' portion when the peripheral portion is occupied. Around the rotatory conveyer is a passage or interval 14 in which the, operatives may'istand. Horizontal ortion 12 is arranged at about the height 0 a table relative to the floor of the passage 14. Around the passage 14 are a plurality of bins, receptacles or receiving oints 15. These in turn may be'surround .by a second passageway 16 and receptacles 17. Preferably receptacles 17 are inclined outward, as at 18 (Fig. 2), so as to deliver the articles by gravity therefrom to platform 19.

It will be seen that the articles coming along the conveyer 11 drop on to the rotatory conveyer and descend adjacent to its periphery, where they are carried around and around until taken off by the operatives, and as they travel past the operatives art-icles can be selected by their label or other suitable indication and merely transferred across to the appropriate bin or receptacle 15, thus becoming sorted and distributed in a very easy manner, and being further sorted, if desired; by the operatives in the outer passage, if such is present.

In Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, the inclined portion 10 1s carried on a suitable wooden framing 20,- which is hungon an end bearing 21 on upright supporting post 22. Beneath the peripheral portions 0 the frame a plurality of guide rollers 25, 4 supported on suitable framing 26, are so placed as to maintain the rotatory conveyer level, but substantially the entire weight should prefer- .ably rest upon the end bearing 21. Beneath the framing 20 is secured the groovedrope wheel 28, which is driven by a rope suitably actuated and running over guide pulleys and take-up lleys, as will'be understood with out detalled descri tion. These are indicated in Figs. 2 an 1. The horizontal peripheral surface'12-of the conveyer may be conveniently made of sheetmetal secured to the framing, and the peripheral flange 3 may be made of angle iron, as seen in gi n F gs 5 to 9, n i e, a y l gh an efiective" construction of the rotatory convy s i l s r t in. i h adjus ab e i wood. At 41' is secured the upperwooden gear wheel 48 and post; The outer horiplaced beneath to is driven by pinion and suitable as shown, preferably from an electric motor. .f r maintaining. the conveyer level, an in- 'portion secured upon the" porting'arti- 1'25.

' 'thatveryconsiderable variations inthe de-;

dasify rods are used combined with wooden rings which may be very conveniently leveled up and made true in erecting the apparatus. In a suitable base 30 is set the upright iron post 31, and secured therein by a rust-joint or otherwise. On the head 32 of this post, as seen in Fig. 9, are carried ball bearin s on which the rotatory conveyer is hung. u order to provide slight vertical adjustment upon this hearing, so as to suitably adjust and relieve the weight of the leveling or laterally supporting bearings of the apparatus, the bearing members, which'turn with the head of the rotatory conveyer, are provided with an adjusting screw 33 having square head 34 under the loose cap 35. By turning this screw the conveyer may be vertically adjusted slightly and accurately upon its end bearing on the head of the post. The 11 per part of the-conveyer is provided with a casting 37 to which are hung two sets of rods 38 and 39. The rods 38 extend parallel with the inclined surface of the conveyer, and upon their lower ends is hung the ring 42, preferably of laminated ring for fastening the upper ends of the wooden facing str1ps'50, which form the inclined wearing surface of the conveyer. By a slight adjustment of the nuts on the bolt rods 38, the ring 42 is easily adjusted so to 'be' exactly concentric "with its axis of rotationand level. Near the lower edge of the inclined surface a wooden ring 43 is hung to ring 41 b a plurality of tie rods or bolts 45, whic 1 by slight adjustment enable the rin 43 to be readily made con centric with rin 42 and-the axis and true. The tie rods or he bolts 39 extend down and support a split casting 47, which carries the split gear 48, and which turns on ball bearings, as 7 indicated at 49, on' the post 31. By a slight adjustment of the tie bolts 39 the casting 47 and gear 48 are leveled. A plurality of tie rods or tie bolts 55 extends from the 1 rim 43, and by ad usting these the outer rlng- .43 is made exactly concentriel with the zontal portion 12 of the conveying surface is secured to ring 43. Braces :58 may be stiffen the support of this horizontal portion. Wooden strips 50, formin the inclined surface 10,,are to ths rmgs 41, 42,'43',-and smoothly, aswlll be understood. The gear wheel'48'. g r

placed beneath the framing, asseen at 62 6). It will be seen that a very light, constructed and easily alined-and'ad-I justed frame for the rotatory'conveyer is thus produced. 3 It will also. be manifest 7 having an outer carrying'portion for arrest-. ing such articles, a plurality of receptacles,

set around the said conveyer, a floor forming. a passage or interval for operatives between the said conveyer and the said receptacles, and a conveyer for delivering articles to the said inner portion of the rotatory conveyer. I

2. In a conveying and sorting device the combination of arotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and having an annular conveying surface inclined outward, and a conveyer delivering to the upper portion of such inclined surface.

3. In a conveying and sorting device, a rotatory conveyer turning ona vertical axis and having an annular conveying surface inclined outward, and-a eripheral upturned- 4. Ina conveyingand sorting device, a

rotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and having an annular conveying 'surface inclined outward, and an outer carrying surface adapted to carry articles at rest at the foot of the incline, and means for dehvering articles onto the inclined surface.

'5. In a conveying and sorting device, a

rotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and having an annular conveying surface 'inclined' outward, .andan outer carrying articles at rest at surface. adapted to ca the foot of the incline, and an upturned peripheral flange, and means for delivering articles onto the inclined surface. lugs 56 on the casting 47 to the outer wooden 6. In a conveying and sorting device, a rotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and having an annular conveying surface inclined outward, .and having means for carrying.- articles at the foot of the inclined surface,-and a plurality of-reeeptacles'set around thesaid conveyer leaving space for articles onto the 7 tinoperatives at the. periphery ofthe conveyer.

7. In a conveying and sorting device, a rotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and comprising a frame having an end bearing' on which it turns, one or' more bearings on,'n. rotatory conveyer turning on a vertical axis and having a coning witnesses this fourth day of December,

veyinfg surface inclirclled outwarcil, a passfige- 1911.

way or operatives a jacent to t e perip ery of the said conveyer, and a receptacle beyond ARTHUR BREESE PROAL 5 and adjacent to the said passageway. Witnesses:

In testimony whereof I have signed this HERMAN GOLDMAN,

specification in the presence of two subscrib- Tnos. M. KEITH. 

